"Pain is inevitable, but misery is optional." Barbara Johnson didn't mince words. Not in her humorous self-help books, which sold millions of copies, or in her hundreds of public appearances. She believed God knows best, that love conquers all and everyone is worthy of being loved deeply. After learning of her son's sexual preferences,She fell into a state of depression and contemplated suicide. It caused a seven-year estrangement between mother and son, and prompted Barbara to do a great deal of soul-searching and write her first book, "Where Does a Mother Go to Resign?", which sold a million copies. Her next book, "Stick a Geranium in Your Hat and Be Happy," sold 5 million copies. Her books hit the Christian best-seller lists and are now printed in 32 languages, in Braille and in large print. Barbara began a ministry to help other parents of gay children. In 1978, she started Spatula Ministries for "parents who had hit the ceiling" when they heard the word "homosexual" and needed to be scraped off with a "spatula of love." She advised mothers to "put a sock in your mouth" if they were shocked to learn they had a gay child. "It's your job to love them." Barbara went on to write a dozen other books laced with humor, faith and positive thinking, with titles such as "Splashes of Joy in the Cesspools of Life" and "I'm So Glad You Told Me What I Didn't Want To Hear!". She became a popular speaker at Women of Faith Christian conferences around the country. Before her death in July, 2007, her son, David, established "The Barbara Johnson Foundation" to continue her ministry helping parents restore their relationship with their children. "I see myself as a cross between Erma Bombeck and Billy Graham," she said in a 1996 Orange County Register article. "I want to drain the pain of hurting people with some humor and laughter, and encourage as many people as I can". (WWW.BarbaraSpatulaJohnson.com)